URIteacherknowledge - DSchnell Day 4

State Standards (GSE's):

Life Science GSEs:

LS2 - Matter cycles and energy flows through and ecosystems.

LS2 (9-11) -3
Students demonstrate an understanding of equilibrium in an ecosystem by …
3a defining and giving an example of equilibrium in an ecosystem.
3b describing ways in which humans can modify ecosystems and describe and predict the potential impact (e.g. human population growth; technology; destruction of habitats; agriculture; pollution; and atmospheric changes).

Example Extension(s)
LS2 (Ext) - 3
Students demonstrate an understanding of equilibrium in an ecosystem by …
3bb researching and citing evidence of global warming to describe the potential impact on both the living and physical systems on Earth.

Context of Lesson:

This is the fourth lesson about the Human Impact on Resources. This lesson focuses on a current and ongoing issue, global warming. The student's homework from the night before was to find a global warming or climate change, current event article that looked interesting to them and read it. The article could come from online, as long as it was no more than 2 years old, or from the newspaper. As an opening to this lesson, students will go around the room and briefly summarize and explain the article that they found. After listening to the student's articles, students will brainstorm and formulate ways that they can help combat this issue of global warming in their everyday lives. Students will then apply this information they shared as a class and create either a bumper sticker or a rap that informs people about this global warming issue or what they can do to combat global warming. The bumper stickers should be eye catching and to the point, yet informative and thoughtful. The rap should be creative, appropriate, and informative about the global warming issue. The bumper stickers and raps will be graded as a quiz assessment.

Opportunities to Learn:

Depth of Knowledge

Webbs Level 2 - Identify and summarize the major events/concepts in an article.
Webbs Level 3 - Create and construct a project that informs people of an issue.
Webbs Level 3 - Students will formulate ways they can help combat this issue of global warming.

Prerequisite Knowledge

Students need to have some understanding of natural resources, and the different types (renewable and nonrenewable). These topics will have already been covered in the previous chapters.
Students will have already been introduced to the issue of global warming and climate change from the previous lesson plan.

Plans for Differentiating Instruction

I will be walking around monitoring group work. Throughout this, I will be available to help answer student's questions and guide students to come to the correct conclusion.
Discussion and guiding questions will be adjusted accordingly and as needed for individuals struggling.
Students will be able to quietly work in pairs if they are struggling answering the questions.
Enrichment: For students that want to be challenged, I will encourage them to create a children's book that explains the issue of global warming in terms that younger children can understand. The children's book should include colorful illustrations and be at an appropriate reading level for younger children. Having students break this complex issue down to "little kid language" helps them to expand their own knowledge.

Accommodations and modifications

I will be available to work with students in groups or one on one, to help guide the student to understand the topic.
Students who are having trouble seeing the overhead/smart board, will be able to move their seats closer to see better.
Students with poor hearing and/or vision will be given preferential seating, near the front of the classroom.
Students with behavioral management problems will be seated away from students that distract him/her, and placed near the front of the classroom.
If for some reason, a student needs more time to complete an assessment, a test for example, the student can come after school.
If a student has an IEP, the modifications and accommodations will be followed as explained on the student's IEP.

Environmental factors

The classroom is organized into three rows of four tables, with 2 students at every table.
When students needs to work with a partner, the will work with the person next to them.
When students need to work in a group, they will work with the table in back of them, to form groups of four.
The Smart Board is located in the center of the front of the room. Every student can see the Smart Board where they sit in the classroom.

Materials

Smart board
Markers
Colored pencils
Crayons
Construction paper
Scissors
Glue
Bumper Sticker sized paper
Textbook (used as a reference)

Objectives:

Students will conduct research and summarize a current event article on global warming to the class.
Students will be able to formulate ways that they can help combat the issue of global warming, in their everyday life.
Students will create a rap or bumper sticker, that describes or illustrates what global warming is, and/or how people can help to combat this issue.

Instruction:

Opening:

Self Directed Opening Activity:
- Global Warming Polar Bears
- Global Warming Polar Bears 2
- The two images above will be projected onto the Smart board before the students come into class. When the students come in, they are will take out their notebooks and use the images and answer the prompt written on the white board which will read, "What do these images make you think of? What do you think is causing this melting and why is this important? Please take a couple minutes to answer these questions quietly." I will give students 3-5 minutes to answer the prompt while I take attendance and check the previous night's homework assignment (finding a current event article on global warming). These images and prompt will get students thinking about the previous lesson on global warming and activate their prior knowledge.
Sharing:
- I will give students a chance to share their reactions to these images by taking a couple minutes and having students raise their hands to share their thoughts. I will ask students, "What did we do last class that has to do with these images?" This will remind students that during the last lesson we were introduced to the issue of global warming from the three cartoons we discusses and from their textbooks. Through this class discussion, my goal is have to students recall any previous information they have learned about global warming.
Segue to Engagement:
- I will ask students verbally and write these questions on the board, "Why do you and I care about the polar bears and the melting ice caps? How does global warming affect our lives?" My goal of asking these questions, is to have students understand how this concept directly relates to their life. Students are more apt to be interested in a lesson's material if they can relate to it. After a couple minutes of brief discussion I will then write our goals for today on the board.
- I will inform students that, "Today we will: 1) Share and discuss our global warming current event articles we found, as last class's homework. 2) Brainstorm and create ways that we can help combat this issue of global warming in our everyday lives. 3) Create a bumper sticker or rap, that informs people of this issue, why it is important, and how they can help.
- Time estimate? (15 min)

Engagement:

Activity 1 - Sharing/Class Discussion of Global Warming Current Event Articles
- Every student will go around the room and summarize their article to the class. I will ask each student if they found anything interesting or shocking about the article. I will ask the students to share any interesting facts or statistics. If while I am monitoring the class discussion, I see students are not paying attention to other students, then students will take brief notes on the articles while the student presents. I will be guiding the class discussion to relevant topics and concerns, all while concentrating on having students be able to answer the question I wrote on the board, "How does global warming affect our lives?" As the teacher, I will also be monitoring the student's behavior and respect towards one another, reminding students that no question is ever stupid, and to respect other student's viewpoints and opinions.
- Why be reactive? Decide on a task that will require Ss to pay attention and assign it before presentations start.
  - e.g. Give Ss a blank table where they list the Title, source and main idea of each article. At the bottom of the table will be space for them to write a conclusion. Three hole punch this so that they have a record of the discussion.
- Time estimate? (40 min if everyone shares).

Activity 2 - Brainstorming and Formulating Ideas to Combat Global Warming
- Students will compile a list of ideas of how they can help combat global warming, in their everyday lives. I will have one student be the "Recorder" and create a list of the class's ideas on the Smart board. I will instruct everyone to copy down this list, as it will serve as a study guide on the test, and help them complete the next activity. To help the students, I will encourage them to use the articles they researched and that we just discussed. I will also remind students to use their book as a reference to help compile this list of ways they can help reduce the human impact on Earth. I will be listening to the student's ideas and discussion closely, and asking guiding questions whenever necessary to help them compile a list of everyday things each student can do to help.
- How will they know what types of actions address global warming, i.e. strategies that reduce greenhouse gases or increase CO2 sequestration? Is this in their reading? If so, you should probably review these ideas before students create their list. Otherwise, they will not go beyond the (hypocritical) statements about consuming or polluting less.
- Time Estimate? (20 min)

Activity 3 - Create a Bumper Sticker or Rap about Global Warming
- Students will choose whether they want to create a bumper sticker or a rap about global warming. I wanted to give students the choice between two activities, so that they will be more creative and enthusiastic about this activity. Knowing my classes, most of the boys will choose to create a rap while the bumper sticker will appeal more towards the girls, who are very artistic. Students will get a half sheet of paper with the instructions for this activity on it. This sheet of paper will read:
  - You have the option to create either a bumper sticker OR a rap about the issue of global warming, which we have just discussed. I encourage you to use the articles you and your classmates found last night, your textbook, the notes from the previous brainstorming activity, and any other materials you may have as references. Your bumper sticker or rap must describe/illustrate what global warming is, and what people can do to combat global warming and reduce the human impact on the Earth. Your bumper sticker or rap should informative and get the attention of people. BE CREATIVE and HAVE FUN!
- Students can work quietly with other classmates around them, but each student must turn in their own piece of work. I will monitor the class, making sure students stay on task and answering any questions they may have.
- This should be done at home, so if time runs short, it is no problem to continue it after class. It is often hard for Ss to be creative in a group, if you don't count showing off for your friends.

Closure:

To close this lesson, I want to first go over what we did today, by asking the students "What did we do today? Did we complete the goals written on the board?"
I will ask the students to answer the same question I asked at the beginning of class and that is still written on the board, "Why do you and I care about the polar bears and the melting ice caps? How does global warming affect our lives?" I will call on students who raise their hands to answer these questions. This should get students thinking about what we accomplished today and why we are learning about global warming.
Why not ask Ss how global warming might effect the earth's carrying capacity for humans.
I will assign the homework verbally, and write the homework on the "Homework Board":
- Read the next section in your book, entitled "Human Impact on Water Resources"
- Answer review questions #1-4 at the end of the section.

Assessment:

The assessment portion of this lesson is the bumper sticker or rap that each student created. I will collect these bumper stickers and raps, and grade them as a quiz grade. This serves to me as an assessment of how much they have learned about global warming and if the students understand how it directly affects their lives. I am grading these based on if students show that they understand what global warming is, if they know ways they can help combat this issue, and creativity.

DSchnell Day 4